Tuning into Excellence: Sonic Stories with Jonathon Deering
Welcome back to another Sonic Story! It’s time to hit play on our chat with Jonathon Deering, where he unwraps the rhythms and riffs of being a trailer composer.
Blogs
Exploring the World of Music for Video Games with Lindsey Kohon
This month on our SAS Speaker Series, we are joined by the one-and-only Lindsey Kohon, Head of Music at gnet agency! In this episode, Lindsey gives us a deep dive into the intricacies of selecting music for video games, the best approach for composing music for video games, and the importance of sound design.
Instagram Copyright Rules for Music: Everything You Need to Know
Instagram—a place where cat videos meet culinary masterpieces, and everyone’s a photographer. But when you decide to spice up your content with a little tune, you enter the wild world of copyright laws. Understanding Instagram copyright rules for music is crucial to avoiding legal pitfalls and leveraging all of Instagram’s capabilities. This guide will help you dance through the Instagram copyright rules without stepping on any legal toes.
Sculpting Soundscapes: Inside Jeremy Bullock's Musical World
Welcome to our first sonic story of 2024! This round, we're tuning in with Jeremy Bullock a.k.a JNUARY, a familiar name to those who follow the pulse of trailer and ad music. Jeremy, a pivotal part of our symphony of composers, brings life to visuals with his auditory artistry. Today, we strip back the layers of his compositions to discover what makes his music so memorable.
Unlocking Music Licensing Secrets with Amanda Levine
Dive deep into the world of music licensing with Amanda Levine, Senior Director of Music & Licensing at Platinum Rye Entertainment, in our first SAS Speaker Series interview of 2024! Amanda shares invaluable insights into the complexities of music licensing and pricing, unraveling the mysteries of hidden fees within contracts, the impact of geo-gigs and geo-blocking on music distribution, and the nuanced world of samples and interpolations.
The Value of Music Supervisors for TikTok
Welcome to the wild world of TikTok, where a 15-second clip can turn a song into an overnight sensation and have you accidentally learn a dance routine at 2 AM. TikTok has not only revolutionized social media but has also reshaped the music industry. Now, music supervisors for TikTok are the secret sauce in navigating your musical strategy and the unpredictable turns TikTok trends can take.
Looking Back on 2023
2023 is waving goodbye, and what a show it's been! Behind every catchy beat and toe-tapping tune is a story from one of our brilliant employees. However, they're not just our team; they're our melody matchmakers, our playlist pioneers, our... okay, enough with the alliterations! It’s time to press the rewind button on 2023 and spotlight our team’s most memorable moments at Score a Score.
Orchestrating Success: Sonic Stories with Roland Bingaman
Today’s Sonic Story is pulling back the curtain on Score a Score’s very own Roland Bingaman! Prepare yourself for an illuminating discussion where Roland shares his perspective on the evolving world of trailer and ad music.
The SAS Speaker Series Presents: How to Use Music on TikTok with Bryan Cosgrove
In our latest episode of the SAS Speaker Series, we had the opportunity to chat with Bryan Cosgrove, Director of Commercial Music and Creative Licensing at TikTok. As both a TikTok Sound Partner and a fan of the app, it has been such a joy seeing what kind of impact TikTok has had on the music industry. Sitting down with Bryan and learning more about how to use music on TikTok, the power of the Commercial Music Library (CML), and ways for musicians to think outside of the box when creating music for TikTok was such an honor.
Composing Excellence: Sonic Stories with Dan Rosen
We're turning up the volume with another installment of Sonic Stories! Tune in for an invigorating conversation where the one-and-only Dan Rosen gives us a unique look into the ins and outs of composing music for trailers and advertisements.
Introducing Bravura! Music for Healthcare and Pharma Ads
The Score a Score team is proud to present to you all, Bravura! What is Bravura you may ask? Allow us to answer your question with another question. Do you suffer from “Scoreophobia” (the fear of sonic deficiency)? If you’ve never heard of this condition, that’s likely because it’s a fictitious disease coined by us to set up our cure for this ailment, which we call Bravura, your prescribed one-stop sonic solution for pharma and healthcare marketing.
We're Ba-ack! The SAS Speaker Series Presents: Jacob Yoffee & Roahn Hylton
Drumroll, please! Earlier this month, we hosted another episode of our SAS Speaker Series and rolled out the red carpet for two musical innovators, Jacob Yoffee and Roahn Hylton. We've had the honor of working and collaborating with this dynamic duo on ad and trailer music for quite some time now. However, this was the first time we ever sat down with them to delve into their backgrounds, explore their creative processes, and learn how they successfully navigate our industry as a two-person powerhouse.
Our Sonic Stories Return with Felix Manzi!
The insight and inspiration don’t stop as we are back with another Sonic Story! We had the pleasure of catching up with the very talented, Felix Manzi. So sit back, grab a paper and pencil (or the notes app from your iPhone), and get ready to feel inspired.
Sound Design vs. Music for Trailers: Balancing the Ultimate Audio Showdown
Gather 'round, folks! Today we're diving into a sonic duel: sound design versus music for trailers. Each brings its own set of attributes to the table. Music provides the emotional depth ready to pull at your heartstrings. Sound design, armed with whooshes, booms, and pops provides that extra sizzle, making sure you don't just see an explosion—you feel it. We love a happy ending, which is why we feel obligated, nay privileged, to end this "feud." Tag along with us as we explain the distinction between sound design versus music for trailers and how they coexist to enhance the storytelling of a trailer.
How to Choose Music for YouTube Videos & Ads
Choosing the right music for YouTube videos & ads isn't just an afterthought—it's a key ingredient in the recipe for success on the platform. Think of music as the seasoning: it can elevate your content to new heights or make it completely unpalatable. Our team at SAS always has a blast selecting music for advertisements. Of course, that includes videos and ads on YouTube. With some of our latest placements like the Hyundai Genesis GV60 “Have Fun, Recharge, Repeat" campaign, we felt inspired to break down our process of picking the perfect music for YouTube videos & ads.
The Top 10 Best Video Game Soundtracks EVER!
Ah, video game music—where would we be without you? Still playing games probably, but silently and awkwardly so. It is mesmerizing how far music has come in video games. Like the reasons mentioned in our blog about the Impact of Music in Commercials, music in video games enhances the gameplay, helps set the tone, creates a pace, and enriches the storytelling. We know that narrowing down the best video game soundtracks of all time to just 10 is a very subjective pursuit. However, after consulting our team of music supervisors, film/TV trailer composers, video game composers, and, of course, the internet, we conjured up our list of the 10 best video game soundtracks of all time. So, grab your controller and headphones, and let’s dive in.
The SAS Speaker Series Presents: A Casual Conversation With Sr. Music Supervisor, Mike Ladman
What’s new at Score a Score you ask? We recently hosted the first episode of our SAS Speaker Series! Now you're probably asking yourself, "What's the SAS Speaker Series?" Our founder and CEO, Jordan Passman, just started hosting Zoom webinars where he's joined by industry experts for some casual conversation about what they do best. Our first guest was Mike Ladman, a good friend and very talented music supervisor. Mike and Jordan met back in 2010 when Jordan first founded SAS. Mike at the time just started his internship at McCann, one of the most legendary ad agencies in the world. After working his way up at McCann, he eventually left to work at Droga5, a highly-respected creative ad agency. He's been at Droga5 for 7 years now as a top Sr. Music Supervisor. From the evolution of music supervision to AI predictions, check out the entire interview below. Or, scroll through to read some of the highlights. Enjoy!
Welcome to Sonic Stories With Our Trailer Music Composers
Our team of trailer music composers is filled with unparalleled talent. In that talent lies an endless amount of wisdom and inspiration. Getting to know the creative process and lessons from artists in the composer universe should be a never-ending pursuit. In our newest blog series, Sonic Stories, we unveil the insights, stories, and personalities of our SAS artists. Starting with the one and only Daniel Ciurlizza (pronounced “Chur-Leet-Zuh”)!
The Most Memorable Placements From Our Music Supervisors
Our music supervisors have been making big moves lately! At the top of the summer, they wrapped up a major Pepsi spot for their “Summer Forever” campaign. Earlier this year, the two LA Lakers-related series we worked on in 2022 got nominated for Sports Emmys, one of which took home the win for Outstanding Documentary Series! As our music supervision team keeps bringing in the heat, we passed the pen (or is it keyboard?) over to Mindy Dinh to talk about the best placements from our SAS music supervisors... so far. Take it away, Mindy!
SAS Favorites: Custom Trailer Music Edition
It has been such a thrill to see how much Score a Score has accomplished over the past few years. The company has grown to 19 team members (and counting), we supervised our first Super Bowl LVI commercial for Bud Light Next, and a few weeks ago, our custom trailer music was part of 7 campaigns nominated for a GTA! That included Best Music for Babylon, which took home the win. Even more recently, we launched the re-brand of our trailers department! We are now officially called Locked.
How to Get Music on TikTok in 2023
If you're looking to master the art of creating music on TikTok, you've come to the right blog. We all know and love TikTok for its short-form videos. Over the past few years, TikTok has become an incredible source for music discovery, where new and upcoming artists can promote their music to a wider audience. As a proud TikTok Sound Partner with dozens of trending tracks in the TikTok Commercial Music Library (CML), we felt it was time to cover everything you need to know about how to get your music on TikTok in 2023.
The Impact of Music in Commercials
Fun fact of the day: As of 2022, the Gen-Z attention span is about 1.3 seconds. Even though this metric is about Gen-Zers, social media has shortened all of our attention spans. This overwhelming fact plays a huge part in how advertisers choose to tell their stories. While visuals and copy take the forefront, the role of music in commercials is equally important when capturing viewers' attention. We’ve got five reasons and examples as to why that is so.
Music Supervision in Film: Tips & Tricks From Leon Bromell
Allow us to introduce Leon Bromell, one of the first music supervisors to join the SAS team! He is based in New York, is always up for a round of tennis, and his love for Greek food runs deep. So does his love for music supervision in film! Finding the perfect song to enhance an audience's emotional response to a movie is a skill. It is one that Leon has perfected. It took time to perfect the beat though. As Leon enters his second year as a music supervisor at Score a Score, he has collected 5 key pieces of wisdom when it comes to music supervision.
The Best Record Shops To Celebrate Record Store Day 2023!
World Record Store Day is upon us! Saturday, April 22nd to be exact. To prepare for this very important holiday, our team of film composers, sound designers, and music supervisors have joined forces to create the ultimate list of record shops to celebrate.
How to License Music Legally for TikTok Videos?
TikTok has become one of the most popular and fastest-growing social media platforms, especially among the younger crowd. It has massively grown in the last few years and now stands above Facebook, Google, and other tech giants. Its rules are simple: pull out your phone, open the app, and do whatever you can to make the most creative 15-second TikTok video. But what is the app like from a legal standpoint? Like other social platforms, TikTok also subjects its users to rules and regulations surrounding music licensing and copyright infringement. But, since the app is relatively new, it is easier to fly under its radar.
Why Is Sonic Branding Important?
Have you ever heard a sound that brings back old memories or provokes certain images? Sound is the native language of the brain which is processed twenty to a hundred times faster than visual input. In fact, hearing is the most responsive human sense, and listening to a sound can help predict what we are about to see. For this reason and many more, sound and sound branding are powerful assets in any branding strategy.
What Makes Good Sound Design?
No matter how beautiful the visuals are, a film needs great sound design to provide an immersive experience to the audience. From background music to dialogue lines, sound design is a crucial component of filmmaking that can enhance the production value of any project. Even though it is mostly overlooked in favor of flashier disciplines, like editing or cinematography, this creative process is just as necessary and works with these elements to deliver a top-tier cinematic experience.
What Song License Do I Need for a Business or Brand?
Music streaming apps like Spotify and Pandora should allow you to play music anywhere for any reason, right? Unfortunately, it’s a bit more complicated than that, especially if you’re playing music for a business or brand. So, before you begin streaming your favorite Spotify station at your new business location for your patrons, you need to read this.
What Song License Do I Need for a Podcast?
What makes a good podcast is a combination of commentary and audio clips. You will need to obtain a song license to play music and audio clips in a podcast. There are different types of song licenses you can choose for different purposes in your podcast. These include sync licenses, fair uses licenses, and live music publishing licenses. Let’s take a look at each of these licenses, including which one you should choose and why.
What is Sonic Branding?
How many brands do you recognize simply from a tune or melody that is played? When you think about it, there are probably a lot more than you realize. That’s why sonic branding is so important. It helps customers recognize your brand by just hearing your brand’s jingle, melody, mnemonic, or tune.
The Journey of a Song in Advertising: How to Get Your Music on Commercials
Although the internet has vastly widened the advertising landscape, many big brands still rely heavily on broadcast TV commercials. The majority of TV shows feature highly competitive music spots. As such, it can be challenging to get your music on such commercials. Below is a look at the process involved in selecting a song for a commercial and tips to increase your chances of your music track being selected.
8 Reasons Why Jingles are Powerful in Advertising
Like most people, you have that one jingle that has become your earworm. It gets stuck in your head and keeps playing, or, as soon as you hear it you can't help but sing along. Although ad jingles have become less popular more recently, they are still effective. Below is a look at eight reasons why jingle marketing is a powerful tool for advertising.
Film & TV Composer Agency: How we can help you!
There is an immeasurable number of composers who can be hard to find. Not from any fault of their own, but because it is sometimes difficult for film and TV composers to market themselves and their talents within an opaque industry. With a film and TV composer agency, composers get help to find work, and production companies are able to gain great talent for their projects. It’s a win-win for the film and TV industry.
How to Get Music on TikTok
To stay relevant on social media, you need to be on all the latest platforms. The latest and fastest-growing social media platform is the music-centric app TikTok, with an estimated 1 billion users. That’s a lot of potential exposure! Artists are constantly gaining popularity on TikTok by adding their music to the app. This is why it’s so important to get your music on TikTok. Users can add your music or sound to their videos, which can end up getting millions of plays, or even billions if it goes viral. But before your song goes viral, it needs to get onto the app. Score a Score will walk you through the process of how to get music on TikTok and why it’s important to have your music on the platform.
What is Sound Design?
Sound design is the process of recording, editing, and mixing various sound elements and musical pieces for all types of visual media, including in a feature film, television, advertisements, video games, and live performances, like theater. For sound design to work, a sound designer and sound design team must know a variety of sound techniques and elements and when to use them. Sound design is music, sound effects, or both that are combined and manipulated to create a sound design element. The sound design element plays a significant role in the audio production of a specific scene of a movie, TV show, play, advertisement, or trailer.
Advertising Background: A Full Breakdown
Pay attention the next time an ad comes on TV. Do you hear background music that matches the type of ad being played? Now imagine if background music wasn’t added at all. Most commercials would sound like they were missing something, and they would be! They would be missing the vital background music that makes an ad captivating and engaging. That’s what makes advertising music so crucial to the TV ad. Music is crucial to advertising and branding, it plays a huge role in grabbing the audience’s attention and retaining it.
What is Music Supervision?
Movies, television, video games, and advertisements all use music to provide the audience with a memorable experience. To ensure the audience receives the best experience, the music will need to be carefully and strategically chosen by someone who has knowledge of music placement, music licensing, and the overall importance that music plays in the production.